A “domain name” generally may include an identification string that defines a realm of administrative autonomy, authority or control within the Internet. Domain names, which may also be referred to as “domains” herein, may be formed by the rules and procedures of the Domain Name System (DNS). Domain names are used in various networking contexts and application-specific naming and addressing purposes. In general, a domain name represents an Internet Protocol (IP) resource, such as a computer used to access the Internet, a server computer hosting a web site, or the web site itself or any other service communicated via the Internet.
Domain names are organized in subordinate levels (subdomains) of the DNS root domain, which is nameless. The first-level set of domain names are the top-level domains (TLDs), including the generic top-level domains (gTLDs), such as the prominent domains com, info, net, edu, and org, and the country code top-level domains (ccTLDs). Below these top-level domains in the DNS hierarchy are the second-level and third-level domain names that may be open for reservation by end-users who wish to connect local area networks to the Internet, create other publicly accessible Internet resources or run web sites.
Domain names may serve to identify Internet resources, such as computers, networks, and services, with a text-based label that is easier to memorize than the numerical addresses used in the Internet protocols. For example, a domain name may represent entire collections of such resources or individual instances. Individual Internet host computers may use domain names as host identifiers, also called host names. The term host name may also be used for the leaf labels in the domain name system, usually without further subordinate domain name space. For example, host names may appear as a component in Uniform Resource Locators (URLs) for Internet resources such as web sites.
Domain names may also be used as simple identification labels to indicate ownership or control of a resource. Such examples are the realm identifiers used in the Session Initiation Protocol (SIP), the Domain Keys used to verify DNS domains in e-mail systems, and in many other Uniform Resource Identifiers (URIs).
An example function of domain names is to provide easily recognizable and memorizable names to numerically addressed Internet resources. This abstraction may allow any resource to be moved to a different physical location in the address topology of the network, globally or locally in an intranet. Such a move may involve changing the IP address of a resource and the corresponding translation of this IP address to and from its domain name.
Additionally, domain names may be used to establish a unique identity. For example, organizations may choose a domain name that corresponds to their name (or brand), helping Internet users to reach them easily. In this context, a brand is a name, term, design, symbol, or other feature that distinguishes an entity (e.g., organization, product, etc.) from its rivals or competitors in the eyes of others (e.g., consumers).
In order to confuse potential victims, attackers of computer systems may try to register domain names that are similar to a certain brand (e.g., Apple®, Microsoft®, etc.) in order to confuse potential victims. Those domain names may often contain the name of the brand or a word similar to the brand name. Another tactic that may be used by attackers is including one or more auxiliary terms in the domain that are connected to the brand but not derived from the brand name. For example, a spoofed domain for a bank may also include the words “financial” or “investment.” As another example, a spoofed domain for a brand may include other trademarks of the brand, such as iPod® of Apple Inc.
Today's Internet technologies, including domain name registration processes, DNS servers, and browser applications, do not provide Internet users or brand name owners with sufficient protection from potential spoofing or phishing on the Internet. Consequently, there is room for technical innovations and improvements.